Twice Round the Daffodils (1962)

A sanatorium where a group of patients reside. They aspire to walk twice round the daffodils which they can do when they are better.

Director:

Gerald Thomas

Writers:

Jack Beale (play), Patrick Cargill (play)

Stars:

Juliet Mills, Donald Sinden, Donald Houston

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Juliet Mills	...	Catty
Donald Sinden	...	Ian Richards
Donald Houston	...	John Rhodes
Kenneth Williams	...	Henry Halfpenny
Ronald Lewis	...	Bob White
Andrew Ray	...	Chris Walker
Joan Sims	...	Harriet Halfpenny
Jill Ireland	...	Janet
Lance Percival	...	George Logg
Sheila Hancock	...	Dora
Nanette Newman	...	Joyce
Renee Houston	...	Matron
Amanda Reiss	...	Dorothy
Mary Powell	...	Mrs. Rhodes
Barbara Roscoe	...	Mary

Storyline

A sanatorium where a group of patients reside. They aspire to walk twice round the daffodils which they can do when they are better.

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Plot Keywords:

sanatorium | nurse | based on play | independent film | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 March 1963 (Hungary)

Also Known As:

Enfermeira para todo o serviço

Filming Locations:

Heatherden Hall, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

GWH

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on the same original play as Carry on Nurse (1959), which features the famous "daffodil" closing joke. Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims, Jill Ireland and Frank Forsyth appear in both films.

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Connections

Referenced in Pinewood: 80 Years of Movie Magic (2015)

User Reviews

Not a typical `Carry On'.

Usually classed as an unofficial `Carry On' (it's by the same production team and features `Carry On-ers' Kenneth Williams and Joan Sims), 'Twice Around The Daffodils' has a far more serious tone and is as likely to bring a lump to your throat, as it is to raise a smile.

Set in a TB clinic (the year that it was made 5,000 people died of that disease), it follows a group of male patients who are confined indefinitely. The title describes what each patient must do - walk twice around the daffodils, in order to be pronounced fit and well enough to leave.

There is a strong emphasis on sentiment and pathos (Donald Houston's 'macho' Welsh minor fears that he will be unable to support his family, Ronald Owen's long-term girlfriend jilts him and the spectre of death is ever-present. Even Kenneth Williams and Joan Sims brother and sister relationship is tinged with sadness. (Her admission at the end that she has been lonely the past year without him moved me greatly).

However the pathos is balanced with comedy. Kenneth Williams is firmly in the 'snooty snob' persona established in the Hudis `Carry Ons'. Lance Percival's West Country lad makes a good foil for Williams' pretensions. Donald Sinden more or less reprises his 'Benskin' role from the `Doctor' movies, as a skirt-chasing RAF officer.

That said, anyone expecting a laugh a minute comedy will be disappointed as it is more a comedy-drama, very different in tone than the more familiar Peter Rogers productions. However, if you were a fan of the actors involved, I'd recommend this movie to you.